Texas is the proud home of an authentic regional cuisine, Tex-Mex food, and the fajita is a main component contributing to the popularity of Tex-Mex in American cuisine. According to Homero Recio, who did his graduate work in animal science at Texas A&M, there is anecdotal evidence of the skirt steak cooked directly on a campfire or on a grill referenced by the Spanish nickname that goes back as far as the 1930s in the ranch lands of South and West Texas. During cattle roundups, beef were butchered regularly to feed the ranch hands. Less valuable parts of the cattle such as the hide, the head, the entrails, and meat trimmings such as skirt were given to the Mexican vaqueros as part of their pay. This practice may have given rise to hearty border dishes like barbacoa de cabeza (head barbecue), menudo (tripe stew), and fajitas/arracheras (grilled skirt steak).
Fast forward to today, the fajita is one of the most popular dishes in many restaurants, which typically serve the meal on a very hot platter to the table. The flavorful dish would arrive from the kitchen to the table accompanied by loud sizzling noises, scintillating smell, and fanfare that elicit attention from all nearby diners. Because the cast iron platter is heated to high temperatures, it often scorches and damages the plywood underliner under the platter. The damages to the plywood underliner may lead to hard to clean and unsanitary surfaces. The fajita meal typically includes many side dishes such as Spanish rice, refried beans, and tortillas, and toppings such as sour cream, cheese, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and guacamole. All of the hot platter, dishes, and plates holding these components of the fajita meal can easily overwhelm the limited space on a dining table. Often other diners' in the dining party must shuffle their plates, along with the chips and salsa, water glasses, etc. to allow the server to set the many parts of the fajita meal down on the table. If more than one person in the dining party order the fajita, then finding room for all the items becomes a real challenge.